5 Crypto KOLs Share Growth and Challenges: Influence, Positioning, and Breakthrough Strategies

Organizer: Fairy, ChianCatcher

Editor: TB, ChainCatcher

In the ups and downs of the crypto market, KOLs are both transmitters of information and explorers of content entrepreneurship. They may go viral due to a single tweet or quietly cultivate their presence over a long period, driving the evolution of industry narratives.

What real challenges do KOLs face amid the tug-of-war between traffic and trust, and the balance between value and monetization? Can newcomers still stand out today?

In this issue of "How Do Crypto KOLs Ride the Waves?", we invite several active crypto KOLs: AB Kuai.Dong, on-chain analyst Ai Yi, Mr. Block, BroLeon from Down Under, and EnHeng, to explore the true portrait of content creators in the crypto world from their beginnings, turning points, to challenges.

You can click to listen to the full replay: https://x.com/i/spaces/1kvKpyjkVMLGE

Question 1: What prompted you to become a KOL? Did you encounter any key turning points or bottlenecks during the process? How did you ultimately break through?

AB Kuai.Dong: I was active on Zhihu from 2019 to 2020, sharing blockchain-related content. At that time, the industry was in a bear market, and I had a relatively free schedule. I was originally in the research department of an exchange, experiencing a phase where the company went from 800 employees to less than 100, and there wasn't much work left for the remaining staff. A colleague successfully built a public account from scratch, which inspired me to start writing on Zhihu.

After writing for about a month, a few of my answers became popular on Zhihu, and my account's weight quickly increased, so I began to seriously manage my content. However, after the "519" ban in 2021, my Zhihu account was suspended, which led me to pause my content creation.

Later, I joined a media outlet, and the industry began to recover from 2020 until 2023, during which I focused on my main job and temporarily set aside content creation. It wasn't until last summer that I picked up my social media accounts again, mainly sharing thoughts and industry observations on the X platform, marking a fresh start to this experience.

Ai Yi: I entered the crypto space in 2018, working on Web3 products, and becoming a KOL was an unexpected opportunity. At that time, my boss wanted to create an account but couldn't get it off the ground, so before leaving, he transferred the account to me. As a product manager, my work was more internal, and I lacked a representative work to showcase, as well as opportunities to meet many peers, so I wanted to use this account as my business card to connect with more interesting people.

The real turning point came in November 2023 when I resumed account management. In December, some of my content was cited by the media, and I gained attention and interaction from the "sister" of the industry. That period coincided with a market recovery, and my account gained momentum quickly.

Mr. Block: I first encountered Bitcoin in 2013, participated in the Ethereum ICO in 2014, started writing crypto content on Facebook in 2016, and began live streaming on YouTube in 2017, primarily introducing projects like Tron, Binance, and ICOs. Starting in 2020, I shifted my focus to DeFi video content while also managing my own fund, concentrating on early-stage investments.

As an early user in the industry, I experienced several key cycles. During the bear market in 2018 and the wave of STO compliance, many projects were affected by regulations, and we had investments impacted as well. With tightening policies in China, many early users and trading platforms fell silent, and the market stagnated from 2019 to 2020.

It wasn't until 2020 that the DeFi explosion brought a turning point. Since then, I have been live streaming almost every day, continuously introducing projects and participating in them without pause.

BroLeon from Down Under: I entered the crypto space in 2016-2017, initially creating a self-media account called "Pizza Hut" on WeChat, where I secured many quality ICO opportunities in Australia, helping domestic friends with investments and project research. I later experienced the bear market of 2018-2019 and briefly returned to traditional finance.

I became active as a KOL when BSC started to rise. As BSC gained traction, I began sharing DeFi-related opportunities in WeChat groups, and the community gradually expanded, reaching as high as 30,000 to 40,000 members across hundreds of groups.

After WeChat began suspending accounts, I transitioned to Twitter, growing from 10,000 followers to 140,000 in over two years. Throughout this process, I didn't encounter significant bottlenecks, but the issue of "competition" did bring some concerns—more and more newcomers and MCN agencies flooded in, the update pace quickened, and the pressure increased. Eventually, I chose to return to my roots and share content that genuinely interests me in a more comfortable way.

EnHeng: I entered the space in 2022 and started using Twitter in 2023. At that time, I needed to publish articles for promotion due to work, but with no followers, no one was watching. So, I began accumulating followers and trying collaborations, which worked well, and I gradually built up my presence. My main source of income relies on trading, and KOL work serves as a supplement through advertising, while I continue to share regularly, keeping the overall pressure low.

Question 2: Some say that now is the springtime for KOL agencies. What is your view on KOL agencies? What do they mean for content creators?

AB Kuai.Dong: I don't believe that we are still in the "springtime" for KOL agencies. When I was the market head in 2020, agencies in the industry could have profit margins as high as 50%-80%, and some could even obtain premium tokens from project parties, making substantial profits upon listing. However, it has become very competitive now, with at least a dozen agencies still active in the market, service fees being continuously driven down, with some even charging only 10%, significantly compressing profit margins, relying on rebates and other methods to make up for profits.

Now, whenever a project officially announces financing, the Twitter DMs are immediately filled with messages from agencies. Although it may seem like a "revival" recently due to the resurgence of token issuance, as more people enter the market, prices are dropping, and it may become a track where making money is no longer easy, similar to VC.

Regarding the bottlenecks in content creation, it's less about the content itself and more about the concerns in expression. Since I've always been on the front lines of the industry, I have to be particularly careful when tweeting to avoid inadvertently offending peers. The greater the influence, the more concerns and responsibilities there are.

Ai Yi: I only truly encountered agencies after becoming a KOL. KOL agencies are a necessary product of the industry's development to a certain stage. Platforms like Bilibili, Douyin, and Xiaohongshu already have mature agency systems. As the crypto industry grows larger, agencies will also become more standardized and systematic.

Many resourceful KOLs are also starting their own agencies or acting as intermediaries. I believe this industry will continue to be competitive, but it will ultimately form a pyramid structure with a concentration at the top.

For content creators, agencies can bridge the information gap. For example, if I have confidence in a project and want to support it early on, but can't necessarily reach the project party, an agency can help facilitate that connection. Additionally, even if I decline a collaboration invitation, I can still learn about the project, which allows me to encounter more new projects. So I think agencies have a positive role to play to some extent.

Mr. Block: I believe the emergence of agencies reflects the gradual maturity of the Web3 industry. In this ecosystem, promotion becomes a necessity after project financing. Many startups often choose to outsource marketing rather than build their own teams. This is where agencies play a crucial role; they have already established stable connections with KOLs and content creators, significantly reducing communication and execution costs.

The Web3 marketing market shows clear regional differences; for instance, the quotes from KOLs in the U.S. and Asia can differ by several times. Similarly, a KOL's influence heavily relies on the quality of the community they operate, not just the number of followers. We've seen some smaller KOLs who, due to their high community engagement, can command tens of thousands of dollars for a single piece of content.

I agree that agencies are an indispensable part of the Web3 ecosystem, but I don't believe this market will ultimately be left with only a few large agencies. As long as information asymmetry exists, the demand for promotion and advertising will continue, and agencies will have their place.

Moreover, AI has now deeply integrated into the content ecosystem. Some European projects we've encountered use AI to manage thousands of social media accounts in bulk, making it difficult to distinguish between real and fake. In the future, many interactions may occur between AI and AI, posing new competition for human creators' influence.

BroLeon from Down Under: I believe the existence of agencies is inevitable. Long ago, institutions and VCs approached me to act as an agency, but I declined because I believe that more specialized individuals will emerge in every niche.

Currently, there are many agencies in the market, but ultimately, there will be a survival of the fittest, leaving only a few winners. We are still in a "wild growth" phase. The crypto markets in the East and West are not fully connected; the West does not understand the value of Eastern KOLs or how to collaborate, while Eastern KOLs often lack the time to attend meetings, build connections, or stay updated on project developments—these tasks indeed require professionals.

The professionalism of agencies is difficult for other roles to replace. However, this is just a transitional phase. In the future, project parties will realize that broad advertising is gradually becoming ineffective, and the market is experiencing fatigue from "bombardment" style promotions. The next phase will require more comprehensive and multi-dimensional promotional methods, which will be a new test for agencies. Ultimately, only those with genuine strategies and execution capabilities will remain.

Additionally, new advertising models like Title are also worth paying attention to. Although there was considerable controversy at first, recent methods such as QR codes or sample giveaways have attracted many mid-tier KOLs. If this model continues to develop, it may replace some functions of traditional agencies.

EnHeng: I believe that some KOLs will definitely transition into project or fund roles in the future, and these roles will have a higher ecological position, provided they succeed.

As for KOL agencies, they may face issues of declining profits and shrinking customer prices in the future. There are currently too many agencies in the market, each connecting with different types of projects; for example, some work with meme coins, while others handle institutional projects. However, as the market becomes increasingly transparent, prices are being driven down, leading to intense overall competition.

Question 3: What do you think about the barriers to "becoming a KOL"? Do newcomers still have opportunities to become KOLs? Where will future KOL opportunities arise?

AB Kuai.Dong: I think the advantage of this industry is that every market cycle brings new directions and topics. For example, the Binance Alpha craze in March this year led to the emergence of many new bloggers. They focus on niche areas, respond quickly, and have precise data; many of them only started this year.

From early last year to the beginning of this year, I also participated in some KOL events and clearly felt the industry was continuously iterating. New projects drive the rise of new bloggers, which can put pressure on some older bloggers. However, many older bloggers gradually exit because they have made enough money and choose to retire or because their life priorities have changed.

Every wave of the market brings opportunities for newcomers; as older bloggers exit, newcomers rise. This is a natural market law. Especially in the rapidly changing crypto capital market, such cycles are very common.

Ai Yi: I believe there are no clear barriers to becoming a KOL; the lower limit is very low, and the upper limit is very high. You just need an account to start. However, what’s truly important is that before starting, you need to think clearly about why you want to become a KOL.

Many people get caught up in how to write content, format it, or choose themes, but I suggest treating your account as a product to plan. Different goals will determine your subsequent development path: if you want to make KOL a career, you need to invest all your energy; if it's just a hobby, casually sharing your views is also fine.

If you decide to take it seriously, you need to choose the right track. Everyone has different strengths, and differentiation is becoming increasingly important. For example, I focus on on-chain data analysis because I am not good at expressing strong opinions and cannot access first-hand resources, but I can output content using data, which is the most natural way for me.

Mr. Block: My advice for newcomers is to create content that others haven't done; this makes it easier to stand out and seize opportunities and airdrops. We started making YouTube videos because no one else was doing it.

From my past experience, the most profitable opportunities are not from paid promotions but from participating in the early design and contributions of projects, especially during the DeFi wave. For example, early KOLs who wrote DeFi content in Europe and the U.S. were invited into projects and received generous rewards.

However, quality projects have become scarcer now, and meme coins are highly volatile, so another important piece of advice is: never use leverage. Many people have lost a lot of money due to leverage in this wave.

Also, don’t regret selling too early or too late; the key is to survive steadily. One last reminder is that in the future, AI will compete in this space, and everyone may manage multiple accounts to handle different situations, like a goalkeeper. You need to learn to manage risks to go far.

BroLeon from Down Under: Regarding KOL development and paths for newcomers, I've seen many successfully transition from Web2, such as starting from self-media and writing content on Kaito. Entering the KOL space is simple, but the upper limit is clear; the key is persistence and finding direction.

To move up, you need clear labels. For example, Ai Yi is an on-chain expert, and B is a gossip-style researcher, both combining personality and ability to form their own style. Once you reach the top, you need to establish your investment logic and style to achieve a "Davis double-click": invest well and recommend accurately, winning both fans and reputation. However, reaching this point also means higher output frequency and content quality requirements, such as daily updates and community management. I used to manage communities effectively, but now I prefer to conserve energy and focus my time on more effective paths.

For me, the endpoint of being a KOL is not managing a fund. Fund management is stressful, and free investing is much easier. I am more optimistic about the "project incubation + KOL" model, such as acting as a project ambassador, which allows me to maintain influence while participating in project growth.